[Shivetya]

With the recent history of topics here about the NSA having back doors into providers of services how is uploading your data where you suggest actually going to protect you?

If anything, I would go to the point of screwing with border agents by having tens of thousands of pictures of my dogs, kids, flowers, and whatnot, all with naming similar to PICnnnnn or whatever is the current default of most digital cameras. Having them given the wrong doc type would be a nice touch too.

Of course why not store your data on a SD card and just pop it somewhere they are not bound to look?

[logfromblammo]

Make sure you include a few vanilla porn pics and only slightly embarrassing drunken party photos. If they don't find some evidence of vice, they will suspect it was just staged data, and they might keep digging.

[jasomill]

When border patrol agents are looking for narcotics, do you honestly think they pass over the guy carrying rolling papers in favor of the one carrying nothing remotely suspicious due to lack of evidence of vice looking "staged" in the latter case? What's different about a porn- and photo-free hard drive full of boring business reports and uninteresting browser histories?

[logfromblammo]

If they are seizing and searching your laptop, it isn't because you're violating ITAR or carrying dual-use spreadsheets. There are few legitimate reasons why the authorities should be at all interested in the data on your devices when you are entering an area where both free speech and privacy are considered rights.

Among other goals, they are assembling profiles on dissenters, to be used against them later. If you give them something that appears legal but still potentially embarrassing, that's disinformation that might save you from a stronger attack later.

This differs from a narcotics search in that having data on electronic devices is not a crime. They could not perform such a search anywhere but at a border crossing.